Q&A With Florida Commit Nate Brown

October 9, 2014

By Steve Nielsen
Scouting Supervisor – Wisconsin/Illinois

The PBR Future Games is one of the most highly recruited events in the country, and for Nate Brown (Arrowhead, 2016) it was a life changing experience. Brown left the Future Games as one of the top rising prospects in the 2016 class. On two consecutive days, Brown sat 88-89 mph while touching 90 with regularity on day two. Brown was already highly touted by our PBR scouting staff since we first saw him in the fall of his sophomore year. But putting him on a stage like the Future Games opened doors all across the country for Brown. Nathan Brown

Fast forward two months and Brown’s verbal commitment to Florida marked the eighth Division I commitment in Wisconsin’s 2016 class.

“The recruiting process started to heat up at the beginning of this last summer. However, the PBR Future Games at Grand Park changed my life. The opportunity to show my talents in front of the top 75-100 college coaches in the country provided me with exposure I could only have dreamed of.” Brown said.

Brown worked closely with his summer league coach at STiKS Academy, Sean Smith, who knows a thing or two about being a highly touted high school prospect. Smith himself was a fifth round draft pick out of high school by the Atlanta Braves in 1992.

“The recruiting process was somewhat close to what I expected because my summer coach Sean Smith prepared me on the process. It turned out to be a little more difficult than originally thought as initiating calls and staying in contact with coaches was my biggest challenge,” said Brown.

Brown’s path crossed with Florida in Westfield, IN at Grand Park, host of the PBR Future Games.

“The PBR Future Games is where Florida first saw me…Coach O'Sullivan began conversations with PBR and then contacted my summer coach. Soon after, I had my first conversation with Coach O'Sullivan, and the relationship grew from there.” He said.

Like it is for any teenager trying to decide where to spend maybe the most crucial four years of his life, Brown said.

“It was a tough decision as I was fortunate to have options from most of the major conferences. Louisville, Western Michigan, Arizona State, Minnesota, and Wisconsin-Milwaukee were the schools on my short list. Each school has much to offer which made my decision difficult.”

Brown added,

“I always dreamed of playing college baseball, but when I made the STiKS Academy U-16 travel team at 15 years old, I knew baseball was my passion. Sean Smith gave me the opportunity and has supported me through the process.”

This spring will be the first season Brown gets to play for his high school, Hartland Arrowhead and he’s looking forward to the challenge. Arrowhead is moving from the summer to spring season in 2015 where Brown will lead an early preseason favorite for the DI state title.

“I am very excited to have the opportunity to play for Hartland Arrowhead this season since they switched to spring baseball. I believe we will have a very strong team this season. Our goal, like most schools, is to win a state title. It will not be easy as there are many really good baseball programs in Wisconsin.”

Q&A With Florida Commit Nate Brown

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